Come Back to Me
by SassyAngel05
Summary: S/S! Well, I don't want to give the last chapter away, so just read:)
1. Default Chapter

Author: Vona  
Title: Come Back to Me  
Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I only own one of them. And it isn't Sark... This story's for all the SSS shippers from the board!  
Pairing: S/S  
Rating: PG to PG-13 in some cases. Just a few situations, involves lots of kissing...  
Summary: Sydney and Sark go on a mission and finally realize they have feelings for each other. Something happens to Sark, and Sydney goes into shut down mode, all the while something had happened to her as well. The only one who is able to help her is Irina. It gets kind of angsty in the middle, but keep reading!  
  
  
  
  
  
Come Back to Me  
  
Sydney walked through the center of the private plane. She had just gotten through with a mission to steal the newest Rambaldi artifact, a statue, that at the moment had no real meaning other than being Rambaldi's. She sat down and opened her lap top. She started to type when she felt his blue eyes on her. She looked up at him.  
"What?"  
"I was trying to decide what you were working on."  
"Why?"  
"I'm quite bored."  
Sydney raised an eyebrow.  
"Poor Mr. Sark has no one to torture or kill."  
"Aw, you have to give me more credit that that. I have no one left to fight with, either."  
Sydney couldn't stop herself from chuckling at his simple joke.  
"It's my dissertation. I think I'd rather stare at the wall than write this."  
"You're earning..."  
"My masters in literature."  
"Indeed."  
Sydney turned her attention back to the screen. She started to type again, but soon stopped.  
"Who decided we needed to write a dissertation, anyways? I mean, what does it really prove, that we have extra time on our hands?"  
"We know how much time you have."  
"Being a spy seems to take up a lot of it."  
Sark resisted the urge to say 'and being a double agent probably takes even more time'. Instead, he put his smirk in place, "You need any help?"  
Sydney shrugged. "You are bored."  
He fell quiet and continued to study her. She flipped through a book and punched something else in. She yawned.  
"Why don't you go to sleep, Sydney?"  
"So you can murder me when I'm unaware?"  
"You're exhausted."  
"I need to work on this."  
"You have."  
She nodded. She clicked on the save button and then shut the computer. She stretched out across three of the seats and put her hands under her head. She was asleep in an instant. Sark quietly stood up, ignoring the two lackey's stares and found a pillow. He lifted Sydney's head and placed it down on the feathery softness. Then he wrapped her up in a blanket. He smoothed her hair back and watched her for a moment. Sydney Bristow was a spy extrodinaire and she still managed to attend college and help out her friends. What an amazing woman. Sark sat back down for the duration of the flight.  
  
The plane landed in Los Angeles. One of the guards tried to wake Sydney. She didn't even stir. "Miss Bristow. Miss Bristow, we're here. Miss Bristow."  
Sark shook his head. "Don't wake her up, Mr. Johnson."  
"But...Mr. Sloane will want her to write her report about..."  
"I will take care of Mr. Sloane, all right. Just leave her alone."  
"Yes, Mr. Sark."  
Sark took out his cell phone.  
"Sloane, it's Sark. I just wanted you to know Sydney and I will not be coming into the office today."  
"Oh? But I need your report."  
"You can wait one day. You can have the statue. Sydney is asleep and shouldn't be awakened. Do you understand, Mr. Sloane?"  
"Yes, Mr. Sark." Sark turned off the phone and turned back to the sleeping angel. He lifted her up and she started to protest. "Shh...Sweetheart, I'm just taking you home." He whispered. She buried her head into his chest. He called out, "Mr. Johnson, get her laptop and bag and follow me to the car."  
Mr. Johnson nodded curtly and picked up the bags. Sark headed off the plane to his convertible. She stretched out in the backseat, still unaware of what was happening around her.  
  
He pulled up in front of Sydney's house and surveyed the area. No one seemed to be home, which was wonderful. No questions that had to be answered. He didn't know where Sydney put her keys, so he decided picking the lock would be better than going through her bags. He came back to the car and brought Sydney inside the house. He carried her trhough and found himself faced with three bedrooms. Two with the door open and one closed. Her room must be closed the door. She would want to discourage her roomates from entering her room. He laid Sydney down gently across the mattress and covered her up with the comforter. He leaned away from her but found his hand intertwined with Sydney's. She was still asleep, but she was drawing him to her. He didn't really want to fight it. He situated himself on the bed, kicking off his shoes. He pulled Sydney closer to him and placed his hands on her waist. They spponed together. They fit perfectly. He breathed in her strawberry scent, the one that had kept him sane so many times while at SD-6. He could feel himself drifting away. He hadn't slept in several days and this is the most comfortable he had ever been. He knew he loved Sydney Bristow, and together, they would always be safe. He felt her turning, her hands covering his where they met at her waist. He closed his own eyes again and fell asleep.  
  
Francie and Will came in the door from Francie's restaurant for the evening. "Hey! Syd's room is open. I bet she's home!"  
So, Francie headed to the bedroom, Will following.  
"OMG! Who is that?!" Francie whispered, after seeing the blond that was holding Sydney. Will stepped closer.  
"No."  
"What?"  
"Oh, no."  
"Will."  
He had closed his eyes and he was shaking his head fervently.   
"Will!"  
The man on the bed opened his bright blue eyes and scanned over the two. He muttered a curse while shifting ever so carefully.   
WIll finally asked, "What are you doing here?"  
"I brought Sydney home." He whispered quietly.  
"You're in bed with her."  
"Can we do this somewhere else, Mr. Tippin?"  
Will nodded conscent. Sark started to stand up.  
"Nooo...oooo." Sydney complained in her sleep.  
"I'll be right back, Sweetheart." He said in her ear, so no one else could hear. Sark followed the two into the living room.  
  
"Who are you?" Francie demanded.  
"My name is Sark, Miss Calfo."  
"How do you know who I am?"  
"Sydney, uh, talks about her friends a lot."  
"Not to you, she doesn't." Will muttered.  
"Why does Will know you and I don't?"  
"I met Will briefly a few months ago."  
"We don't get along. I think you should leave."  
"No."  
"Now."  
"I'm not leaving." Sark said stubbornly.  
"Do you want me to call the police?"  
Sark shook his head.  
"Do you want me to get out my pliers and..."  
"SARK!"  
He heard her yell from the doorway. He turned guiltily to her.  
"What...Why...Ah! Will, go on into Francie's room. Sark, my room!"  
He followed her orders reluctantly. Sydney glanced at Francie. "They really hate each other."  
She went into her bedroom and slammed the door.  
  
Will had his cell phone out.  
"Vaughn."  
"Sark is here."  
"Where's Sydney?" Vaughn asked, concerned as soon as he recognized the voice on the other end.  
"She's in the bedroom."  
"Can I talk to her?"  
"Not right not. She's in there with Sark."  
"I'm on my way!"  
"Thanks."  
He hung up the phone as Francie entered. "Hey. Who was that?"  
"Abby. She was checking up on me."  
"Why do you hate Sark so much? Are you jealous?"  
"No. I just don't...he would hurt Sydney."  
"He would?"  
"Yeah. Like really hurt her."  
"He's abusive."  
"Mmmm..." He grunted, but Francie took that as a yes.  
"Wow. I never though Sydney had an abusive boyfriend. That explains that bruise I saw on her last week."  
"He's not her boyfriend." That was the only thing Will bothered to correct.  
"Oh."  
Will stopped the conversation by pacing.  
  
Sydney came in and found that Sark had sunk down into her pillows. He glanced up at her and she found that she couldn't stay angry at him while looking into those eyes. "How'd I get home?" She asked.  
"I drove you here."  
"Why didn't you wake me up?"  
Sark didn't answer.  
"Sark..."  
"You looked so peaceful, I didn't want to."  
Sydney stared at him.  
"How did Will see you?"  
"I fell asleep, too. They were home when I woke up again."  
"And you thought it would be fun to threaten Will again?"  
Sark shrugged. "He did provoke me."  
"You want us to work peacefully together, but you can't keep threatening to torture my friend."  
Sydney was now standing in front of him. She looked down at him and fell into the swirling icy depths of his eyes. Her heart started to pound and felt the blood rushing to her head. She felt Sark's hands rise to her hips and the contact made her tingle. He was standing, then, his hands sliding to her back. He started to bend down to reach her lips, Sydney leaning up. Both were breathing heavily from anticipation. The door opened and a yell of, "Sydney, are you all right?" rang through the air. Sydney jumped away from Sark's embrace and found Michael Vaughn's emerald eyes looking at her.   
"Vaughn! How did you..."  
"Will called. I came as soon as I could. I snuck in the backdoor, through the trees in your backyard, so no one saw me. I made sure."  
"Hello, Mr. Vaughn. I trust that you are feeling much better now."  
Vaughn ignored his question.   
"What did Will tell you?" Sydney asked, curiously.  
"That Sark was here and that you two were alone in the bedroom. I thought he had you...hostage. He didn't, did he? I didn't think this through rationally."  
Sydney and Sark exchanged quick glances.   
"No. He wasn't. He just brought me home from the last mission."  
"I'll be taking my leave now. See you at work..."  
"Shoot! Sloane! You let me sleep when I should have been at SD-6. Just what I needed! To raise Sloane's suspicions."  
"Sydney, calm down."  
She punched his chest, but he grabbed the fist.   
"I called Sloane and told him we would be in later."  
"YOU...you did?"  
"Mhm."  
"Thanks."  
He shrugged once more.  
"You want to go in? I'll give you a ride."  
"Yeah. I should. I need to give him my op tech report. Thanks, Vaughn, for coming, but I've got to go. Now you need to get out of here before Francie sees another new boy in my room."  
Vaughn nodded. Sydney smiled her for-Vaughn-only smile and then followed Sark to his convertible. He turned the music up loud and they zoomed away. 


	2. Come Back to Me Chapter Two

Come Back to Me  
Chapter Two  
  
  
Sark opened the car door for her. Neither wanted to say anything about the almost kiss or what would have happened if Vaughn had interrupted. They entered the SD-6 office together, Sark's hand unconciously on the small of her back.  
"Miss Bristow!" Marshall called out. "You got here really fast!"  
"What do you mean?"  
"Mr. Sloane just called another meeting."  
Sydney sighed. Another mission. She had just gotten back from one today. They entered the conference room and found Jack and Sloane already waiting.   
"How nice of Sleeping Beauty to grace us with her presence."  
Sydney glared up at Sark who shrugged innocently. Sydney sat down and Sark followed suit.   
"The statue you stole needs a key to open it. The key is here."  
He pulled up a picture of a mansion.  
"It's actually a hotel owned by this man."  
"Estevan Poliatez." Sark supplied.  
"Correct, Mr. Sark. He owns the mansion in San Jose."  
"We're going to an island." Sydney said.  
"As a honeymooning couple."  
"Who is a honeymooning couple?"  
"You and Mr. Sark."  
Sydney shook her head. Going as a honeymooning couple would not make the kissing feelings go away.   
"Oh, calm down, Sweetheart. We both know how to pretend."  
"Sweetheart." Sydney set her gaze on him, shooting deadly glares.  
"You're my new wife. Terms of endearment seem appropriate."  
Sydney sighed loudly.  
"You leave tonight."  
She nodded.  
"Right now. We've already prepared island clothes and your aliases for you. Dismissed."  
Marshall pulled Sydney into his office and explained the tech to her. Then, she called Francie to tell her she wasn't coming home.  
"Hey, Francie. I have another trip. Yeah. I know I just got back, but I'm going to an island, so it won't be too bad. Sark is going with me. What?! Francie! Sark is not beating me up. Will told you all about it, huh? Oh, Good Lord, Mr. Sark is not abusing me."  
Sydney heard Sark chuckling behind her. She swatted at him until he stopped.  
"No, I did not get that bruise from him. I dropped a book on my head. Yes, I promise. That's the truth, Fran. Good bye."  
"I'm abusive?"  
"Will told her all about it."  
She joined in his laughter.  
"Come on. We've got a plane to catch."  
"Commercial flights disgust me." Sark commented as they left the Credit Dauphine building.  
  
"Oh, darling, come along! We have to go check in!" Sark called after Sydney, in his usual British accent.  
"I'm coming, Hugglebear. I just absolutely cannot get over this place!" Sydney replied, in a disty drawl. Sark pulled her to him and they entered the lobby, ignoring the stares they both received.  
"Hello, Jonathan Aksander. Mr. and Mrs. Aksander."  
Sydney wiggled her ring finger.  
"Newly Mrs. This place is absolutely gorgeous."  
"I totally agree with my wife. We should have a reservation."  
The concierge smiled politely.  
"The honeymoon suite."  
Sydney giggled. She stared into Sark's eyes and could see the amusement sparkling in them. He kissed her nose affectionately. Real affection. Sydney smiled brightly. The way they could work together like that was amazing. They hadn't practiced any dialogue or anything. They just went with it and the other could always pick up the slack. The concierge handed over the key.  
"Enjoy your stay."  
"Oh, we will." Sark took her hand and she hung onto his arm. He punched the elevator button and they made their way to the suite.  
  
"Wow. It really is beautiful. I love islands."  
"Don't you mean it is absolutely gorgeous?" Sark imitated.  
"Why, yes, Darling." Sydney mocking his own voice. They smiled at each, the usual angry tension gone.  
"I'll call Sloane and find out where the key is hidden."  
"Okay."  
Sark dialed his cell phone.  
"Mr. Sloane. We're here."  
"Ah, Mr. Sark. We haven't been able to locate which room the key is in. We'll know by tomorrow, but that means you'll actually have to stay for a night."  
"You get to tell Sydney about this."  
"Just tell her the country needs her. She'll buy into that."  
Sark shook his head, hating to hear Sloane say that.  
"Contact us as soon as you know."  
"Good bye, Mr. Sark."  
Sark turned and plastered a charming smile on his face.  
"So, how do you feel about sleeping overnight in this absolutely gorgeous place?"  
"What?!"  
"They aren't sure where the key is, so we have to stay here until they find out."  
"Great." Sydney put her head in her hands.  
"You want to go out tonight?"  
"Excuse me?"  
"You've been working hard and so have I. We're stuck on a beautiful island for the night. Who wants to sit around in the hotel room?"  
Sydney tilted her head.  
"Are you asking me out, Mr. Sark?"  
"No. Just offering to keep you entertained."  
"Okay, okay. Give me an hour."  
Sydney slipped into the bathroom to get ready.  
  
Sydney emerged from the bathroom 45 minutes later. Sark couldn't stop himself from scanning over her. She was wearing a silver halter top, yet it was fairly modest, and black pants. Her hair was in curls and her make up light, with red lip gloss, making her lips look even more kissable. He had changed, also, wearing jeans and a button shirt, designer, of course. He held out his arm and Sydney cautiously took it. They sat down at the hotel restaurant for the first stop of the evening. "Tell me about you, Sark." Sydney requested, quietly. She had being dying to know anything she could about him. He was so secretive, so mysterious, she had to know.  
"What do you want to know?"  
"Your real name and age to start with."  
"I'm 27. My name is Andrew."  
"Wow. That was easy."  
He smiled. "I don't have to be so secretive right now. We aren't even working at the moment. Besides, I sincerely doubt that you're going to go tell everybody about me."  
She smiled briefly. Her cell phone rang. It was her CIA issued phone. She shook her head in denial and groaned.  
"Don't answer it. Call him back when we're done."  
"Who?"  
"Mr. Vaughn."  
Sydney shrugged non commitedly. He always knew. But she didn't answer it. Sark sipped his Petreuse and studied the girl before him. He loved her. She was his equal. He was usually so much more intelligent than everyone, but not Sydney Bristow. She was lovely and brilliant.  
"Do you want to go to a club after this?"  
"I'm trying to picture you in a club."  
Sark smirked.  
"I do act like I'm my age sometimes."  
"When no one is looking?"  
"Pretty much. I'm a business man, Sydney. I have to be professional at all times. In the beginning, people wouldn't even take me seriously because of my age."  
Sydney nodded. "I know. I get the same thing. Plus I'm a woman."  
"We need to tackle the descrimination issues, don't we?"  
"Another night. Why are you doing this for me, Andrew?"  
"Eh..." He didn't have to answer because the food arrived.  
  
Sydney drug him out to the group of people on the dance floor. A fast song was playing. Sydney threw her hands in the air and started to shake around. Sark joined in, his hands found their way to her waist. The song switched a slower song. Sydney recognized it. "This is 'Pretty Girl'."  
"Indeed."  
Sydney started to sing along under breath, but it was coming. The part she felt fit the two of them. She stared into his eyes and Sark started to lean down to her. Sydney put her head on his shoulder.   
"Her killer instinct tells her to, be aware of evil men." She sang into his ear.  
Sark whispered, huskily, "Am I an evil man, Sydney?"  
"Yes." She replied, matter of factly.  
"Are you listening to your instincts?"  
"No."  
His mouth descended on hers and they were kissing. Passionately. The entire world seemed to fall away. All that mattered was that their mouths were melded together. Sydney finally pulled away breathlessly. Sark smiled at her and cupped her cheeks in his hands.  
"What are we doing, Andrew?"  
"I believe it's called making out."  
Sydney chuckled. "You know what I mean."  
"Honestly, I don't really know."  
Sydney accepted that. She brushed her fingers slightly over his mouth.  
"Let's get out of here."  
"All right."  
He took her hand and they headed to the hotel.  
  
"Vaughn." He answered, worriedly.  
"Hey." Sydney said as she pulled off her pants and replaced them with pajama bottoms. She started to unhook her watch.  
"Where have you been, Sydney? I've been calling you all night."  
"I was out."  
"On a mission? You're dad said they're trying to find the key right now."  
"They are."  
"So you were out..."  
"Clubbing, Daddy."  
Vaughn sighed.  
"Alone and while you were on a mission?"  
"No. And yeah, except I wasn't supposed to be working while I was out."  
"Who were you with?"  
"Sark."  
"Sydney!"  
"He offered. We were both bored, okay?"  
She felt fingers touch her neck softly and unclasp the necklace she was wearing. They she felt his lips running its way down her neck to her collarbone. She gasped softly.  
"Are you all right, Sydney?"  
"Yeah." She offered shakily. Sark was now affectively nibbling on one of her earlobes. She swatted at him, but found that it didn't do any good. His hands were traveling down her back, making her go insane.  
"Vaughn..."  
"Yeah?"  
"What is it that you needed?"  
Sark lowered his lips to the hollow of her neck and then sucked on her shoulder.  
"I just wanted to make sure you were okay."  
She managed to supress a groan.  
"I'm great, Vaughn. I'll talk to you when I get back."  
Sydney hung up the phone before Vaughn had a chance to say anything else. She groaned as Sarks lips moved some more.  
"You were not being helpful."  
"But you still loved it, didn't you?"  
Sydney sighed as she placed her hands in his hair. He pushed her against the bathroom counter. They began to kiss, battling for control. Both moaned happily as they continued.  
  
Sark woke up to the annoying ring of his cell phone. He carefully stood up and heard Sydney mumble, "Don't answer it."  
"It's probably Sloane, Sweetheart."  
"Don't care."  
Sark laughed.  
"Hello?"  
"Mr. Sark, the key is in room 105."  
"Thanks."  
Sark shook Sydney gently.  
"Up. We have to get ourselves that key."  
"Nu uh."  
"Yes."  
"Sleepy."  
"Sydney!"  
"Andrew!"  
He pulled the blanket off of her.  
"COLD!"  
"Have we reverted back to Neandrathal conversations?"  
Sydney glared at him as she gathered her clothes to get dressed.  
  
They strolled down the mansion's hall and stopped in front of room 105. She pulled off her necklace that Marshall had designed. She hooked the necklace into the lock and turned it sharply. The door opened and they slid inside.   
"Okay. It's in a blue box."  
They started to rifle through Poliatez's things.  
"Found it!"  
Sydney slipped it in her bag. They hurried down the hall, but ran into Estevan.  
"This is a private wing."  
Sydney did her best to look confused.  
"It is? I just wanted to explore the hotel! I am so sorry! We're sorry, aren't we, honey?"  
"Yes, Sweetheart. My apologies, Sir."  
"Don't come this way again."  
"Oh, we won't!" Sydney promised and the couple rushed away. 


	3. Come Back to Me Chapter Three

Come Back to Me  
Chapter Three  
  
It had been one week since Sark and Sydney had kissed. They had met at a little cafe in the outskirts of Los Angeles.   
"I've missed kissing you." Sark said as he took Sydney's hand and pressed his lips to her knuckles.   
"I've missed kissing you. How on earth did you become so great?"  
"I'm good at everything."  
"Yeah, you are."  
"This is hard, isn't it?"  
"Pretending like I don't want you everytime I see you. Yeah."  
"It's best, though."  
"The CIA would frown on me dating an enemy of the United States. And my friends would freak."  
"And if any of my enemies caught wind that I was in love, they would use it against me."  
Sydney stopped sipping her coke. She started to cough.  
"Are you okay?'  
"You just said that you were in love."  
"I did? No, I didn't. You must have misheard me."  
"No. I heard you plainly. You said that if your enemies found out you were in love."  
Sark looked down at his plate. "I did..."  
"You love me?"  
Sark shrugged. Sydney smiled. A very large smile.  
"So maybe I do."  
Sydney leaned across the table. "You know what?"  
"What?"  
"I love you, too."  
Their eyes met and both shone in happiness. Sydney captured his lips and they shared a brief kiss. Sark looked away, unsure. He had no experience in the love department. No one had even told him that they loved him. He had always thought love was a weakness. It didn't seem it like that anymore.  
  
Three weeks later, since the confessions had taken place, Sloane called Sydney into her office. She glanced around the building for Sark, but he was missing this morning. She hadn't seen him since Friday, which was unusual. They had seen each other everyday since they had said they loved each other. Sometimes they would talk about their pasts, sometimes they would kiss. Sometimes they would just sit in a comfortable silence, glad to be together. But they rarely ever talked about work. Sydney came back to reality when she found herself in front of Sloane's office. She knocked on Sloane's door and waited for him to let her in. She sat down in the leather chair opposite Sloane and waited for him to speak. "Well, when Mr. Sark first began to work here, both you and Agent Dixon had your reservations. It turns out you were correct."  
"Excuse me?" Sydney asked, feeling bile run up her throat.  
"He was betraying us the whole time."  
"He was?"  
"Yes. Do you recall the statue and key you stole?"  
"I do."  
"The statue was a fake and the key had been replicated."  
Sydney's heart stopped.  
"Really?"  
"Yes. So, I asked Mr. Sark about it to see if he had any ideas on who had done it. He admitted to switching the statues and making the key. When I asked him why he had done that, he didn't have a good answer."  
Sydney felt the vomit rising.  
"What did you do, Mr. Sloane?"  
"After further interrogation in the conversation room, I had to have him killed. Dixon will be your partner again."  
Sydney stopped the tears in her eyes. "Excuse me, Mr. Sloane..."  
Sydney ran out of the office and into the bathroom. She found herself hanging over the porcelin bowl, vomiting. She sat down on the floor and banged her head on the stalls. He was dead. Andrew Sark was gone. For her. Sark had died to protect her. She had to go back into Sloane's office and explain why she had run off. Sloane was waiting for her when she came out of the restroom. "Are you all right, Sydney?"  
"Iv'e been feeling sick for the last week. Naseau and everything. I think I may be coming down with the flu."  
"Oh."  
"Yes. I do apologize. So you eliminated Mr. Sark?"  
"I did. It was best. He was betraying us, the country and his ammunity. It had to be done."  
"I agree, Sir."  
Sloane smiled grimly at her.   
"Thank you, Sydney. That will be all."  
Sydney nodded and exited the office once again, this time leaving the building, dialing her cell phone on the way out.  
  
She drove to the warehouse, tears falling down her face. She couldn't stop them anymore. She had loved Andrew Sark more than anything in the world. They hadn't dated for long, but she had fallen long and hard. And he was gone. Just like everyone else. Vaughn was already waiting for her in the warehouse.  
"Sydney? What's wrong? You sounded really upset on the phone."  
Sydney fell into his arms, balling. He didn't understand, but he held her, rocking her back and forth. "Shh...what's wrong, Sydney?"  
"Sark's dead."  
"Why are you crying about that?" Vaughn asked, feeling incredibly confused.  
Sydney couldn't tell him everything. Vaughn just wouldn't understand.   
"Sark died for me."  
"What?"  
"Sloane knew the statues had been switched and the key replicated. When he asked Sark who had done it, he took the blame. Sloane killed him. It should have been me. It should have been me."  
"Why would Sark have covered for you?"  
Sydney couldn't answer that. Because we were in love, idiot. Because Sark and I had something special and new and he would have done anything to protect me. Because he did do anything to protect me. He just wanted to keep me safe. And he'll never know. He'll never know that I'm pregnant. He'll never know that he's going to be a father. He'll never know that we would be that family we had always been longing for. That we would finally have it, together. She started to whisper. "He'll never know. He'll never know. He'll never know."  
Vaughn wanted to ask what she meant, but didn't. She seemed really upset about this and if he didn't know Sydney Bristow better, he would think it was about something more than he took the blame for her.  
  
Sark didn't have a funeral. She figured they assumed no one would attend. A lot of people in this world hated him and were ecstatic to see him dead. Sloane had told the rest of the office that Sark had died trying to help the country. That he wasn't the bad guy. They had to make it seem like there had been no mistake made when they allowed him to join the 'CIA'. She sat down in front of the grave stone that read, "MR. SARK ENIGMA WRAPPED IN A PUZZLE"  
They didn't even know his first name. No one really knew Sark. They didn't even try to get to know him. Of course, he was intimidating and wasn't the most friendly person. The come near me and I'll kill you attitude probably scared a lot of people off. Sydney placed flowers on the stone and started to talk to him quietly.  
"Hey. I just wanted to bring you flowers since you didn't have a funeral. Not many people know you're gone, you know."  
She paused. The tears were coming.  
"Why did you do that, Andrew?" She yelled.  
"You could have told him you had no idea and then warned me that he was on the lookout. You should have just come to me, not try to take the blame. Why did you do this? I loved you more than anything in this world. Don't you get that? We hadn't been together long, but you meant so much to me. We loved each other. That was all that mattered. Nothing else did. It was you and me. Remember? Just come back. You know, I'm pregnant. I was going to tell you on our next date. We were going to be that family we both dreamed of. The family that loved each other and loved their children. Things would have been hard. We would have had to tell people, but we could have been together. That's what we wanted. Please, just come back. Please. I need you. The baby needs you. This is going to be hard. Just come back. Please, please, come back to me." She couldn't stop her tear flow. "I loved you so much. Please." She wailed. But he wouldn't be back. He was gone. Gone forever.   
"You won't ever know your baby. You won't ever have that family, will you? Because you had to be stupid. You had to try to protect me! I can do that myself! You should have known that. Why?!" Sydney slapped the ground in front of her. She sobbed and wailed and she heard someone come up behind her. She looked up and found a priest standing over her.  
"My daughter, are you okay?"  
"No." She sobbed.  
The priest knelt next to her.  
"Would you like to talk about it?"  
"He's gone."  
"Mr. Sark?"  
"Yes. Gone. Before he even knew."  
"Knew what, my daughter?"  
"That I was pregnant. He would have been happy, you know. Most people would think he would have been angry. He didn't exactly seem like the child type, but he would have been ecstatic. He loved me."  
"I'm sure he did."  
"He would have taken care of both of us."  
"Yes, my daughter."  
"But he's gone."  
"He'll always be with you."  
"No. He left. Just like everyone always does. They always die. One minute their great and then poof, their life just flickers out. No one even notices usually."  
Her eyes were dull now, void of pain, void of life.  
"Thank you, father."  
Sydney stood up.   
"Thank you." She felt her pager go off. It was Kendall.   
"I have to go now." Her voice was eerie. The priest stood up worriedly.  
"Can I help you?"  
"No. No one can. He was the only one." Sydney left the graveyard quickly. 


	4. Come Back to Me Chapter Four

Come Back to Me  
Chapter Four  
  
"We need you to ask your mother about the compoud in Belgium." Kendall completed his statement. Sydney had just stood in front of him, Vaughn and Jack behind her, listening. Sydney did not ask questions. "Okay." She said, her voice lacking any kind of emotion. Vaughn watched her worriedly, not sure why she was upset. Jack exchanged a look of concern with Vaughn as they watched Sydney enter the hallway to Irina's cell. They watched the screen and listened carefully.  
"I need to find out how to get in the compound in Belgium."  
Irina tilted her head.  
Sydney repeated her question, her voice still void of any kind of emotion.   
"You're glowing. Even when you're sad about something, you're glowing."  
Sydney didn't say anything.  
"Why you are sad, I do not know. This should be a happy time for you."  
Sydney shifted uncomfortably. "What are you talking about?"  
"You're pregnant, are you not, Sydney?"  
Sydney looked at her mother.   
"The compound in Belgium. I have to leave in an hour. Hurry up and tell me how to get in."  
"Not until you answer me. You show all the signs of pregnancy, the glow, the maternal glow, except you are not showing yet. But you are still sad. Why are you sad? Pregnancy is a happy time for a woman. I remember when I found out I was pregnant with you, I thought I was going to float away from happiness. I had a moment of true happiness. Even with your father."  
Sydney couldn't say anything. She had tears in her eyes.  
"You were happy when you found out, weren't you? Something happened. Who is the father, Sydney?"  
Jack and Vaughn were watching the conversation from the main room in the Op tech center. Weiss had joined them, watching the screen. Sydney wasn't denying that she was pregnant. Jack's mouth had kind of fallen open and Vaughn had a look of shock on his face.  
"Is it Mr. Vaughn's, Sydney?"  
"No."  
"I didn't think it was. No one knew about this man, did they?" Irina's brown eyes searched her daughter's face.  
Sydney shook her head briefly.  
"Why are you sad?"  
"He loved me."  
"He did."  
"He really did. He didn't always know how to say it, but he did. I knew he did. After he slipped up that one day, I knew."  
She was smiling a little bit, but a tear fell down her cheek. Irina actually felt her own maternal instincts kick in, wanting to comfort her.  
"Who is he, Sydney?"  
"He wanted me to be safe. He was so afraid I would be caught. He never said that, either, but I knew he worried."  
"As would anyone in his position." Irina had decided to go with it.  
"He would have been so happy to have a baby. I didn't get to tell him. He would have loved this baby just as much as he loved me."  
"I'm sure he would have."  
"He was so stupid. I can take care of myself. But he wanted to protect me. He always wanted to protect me. He stopped thinking about protecting himself."  
"He wanted to keep you safe. You said that. Who was that again?"  
Sydney looked her mother in the eyes. "Andrew."  
"Andrew..."   
Irina's eyes widened. "Andrew."  
Sydney nodded. Irina knew. Andrew was Sark. She started to put two and two together.  
"He's gone."  
"Yes."  
"But not willingly."  
"No. He wanted to keep me safe."  
Sydney repeated that several times.   
"He's dead."  
Sydney started to cry.   
"Yes."  
"Oh, sweetheart..."  
That set her off harder.  
"He called me that all the time. He always called me that."  
"I'm sorry, Sydney."  
"Now I'm alone. I'm always alone, Mommy."  
"You're not alone. You're father cares about you, so does Mr. Vaughn. And you have friends, Mr. Tippin, Miss Calfo. They all care for you. I care for you too."  
"But none of them as much as he did."  
"He was a passionate man. I don't doubt that, Sydney. But he would want you to go on."  
Sydney collapsed onto the floor.  
"I can't sleep. I can't eat. I can't do anything but cry. And when I think I'm done crying, I cry some more."  
"Part of that is your mood swings, Sydney."  
"Why won't he just come back, Mommy?"  
Irina shivered at her calling her mommy. Sydney really was upset.  
"He would if he could, Baby, but he can't. He would want you to go on, bring his baby into the world, and love it like he would have."  
Sydney nodded when she heard the gates opening. Vaughn and Jack had come running in. Weiss followed them, also worried about Sydney. They had heard almost the entire conversation. She had sounded so odd, so distant, they freaked out. And then they heard her say she was pregnant. But they didn't understand who's it was. Jack looked up at Irina.   
"Whose baby is it, Irina?"  
"His." Was all Irina would say.  
"Irina...dangit, tell me whose it is."  
"If she wants you to know, she'll tell you."  
Irina turned her back away from the group. Vaughn had knelt in front of Sydney.   
"Sydney...it's okay."  
Sydney stopped crying. She stood up. "I can't do this. I cannot do this. Tell Devlin or Kendall or whoever you want that I will not be going on this mission. Tell them I'm off active duty. Just leave me alone." She shared a look with her mother and ran away from the building, just wanting to get away from everybody.  
  
Sydney slammed the door to her house and dropped the keys on the table. Will and Francie were sitting worriedly in the living room. "Sydney! Are you okay?!"  
Sydney sighed. She had hoped to get away from people when she got home, not face more.  
"I'm fine."  
"Your dad called."  
"He should stay out of it."  
"He's worried about you. He didn't tell me anything...he just said you were upset."  
"Okay. I was upset."  
"Actually, he said you had some sort of break down." Francie supplied.  
Sydney sighed and put up her 'I'm great' facade.  
"I'm fine. Really."  
Will shook his head.   
"Why won't you tell us what happened?" Francie prodded.  
"Nothing happened. My dad is just fretting for nothing and now he's got you to going as well."  
"Sydney..."  
"I'm going to take a bubble bath, all right? Just let me be."  
She entered the bathroom and started up the tub of water. She sank into it and closed her eyes. All she could see was his blue eyes staring at her with such interest and love, she couldn't stop herself from wailing. Will stood outside the door, listening closely, trying to decipher anything she said. All he could hear was her muttering Andrew.  
  
Another three weeks went by. Sydney hadn't been called up to do any missions for SD-6, which puzzled Sydney. So she confronted Sloane about it.  
"Why haven't I been doing anything for the last month?"  
"I talked to your father."  
"What did he say?"  
"That you weren't going to be active for another 9 months."  
Sydney cringed.  
"He told you I was pregnant."  
"Yes. But he was a little shady on the details. I'm sorry you didn't feel you could come to me about this. I am ecstatic to find out another baby Bristow will be running around."  
Sydney pursed her lips.  
"So, who's the proud papa?"  
"No one."  
"Now I know that isn't true."  
"It doesn't matter, Mr. Sloane. He's not here now."  
"Who is he?"  
"Doesn't matter." Sydney whispered.  
Sloane pulled her into a fatherly hug and that made Sydney want to hurl.   
"Thanks."  
"I'm here for you if you need me, Sydney. You know I always have been."  
"Yes. I know."  
"We'll put you on communications or something, if that would make you feel more useful."  
"I would like to, until I get closer to term."  
"Congratulations, Sydney."  
"Thank you." Sydney exited the office quickly, searching for her father, wanting to give him a piece of her mind.  
  
Sydney had finally gotten a hold of him by phone and she asked him to come over. Jack arrived ten minutes later, hoping his daughter was finally ready to talk to him. But after the first thing out of her mouth, he knew this wasn't the conversation he wanted to be in.  
"HOW COULD YOU TELL SLOANE I WAS PREGNANT?!"  
"You hadn't told him yet. I just wanted you to be safe and the baby."  
"IT WASN'T YOUR PLACE TO TELL HIM THAT! I WOULD HAVE TOLD HIM WHEN I WANTED TO. INSTEAD, YOU DECIDED THAT IT WAS UP TO YOU!"  
"If you were injured, it would hurt your baby. I didn't want that to happen and I knew you'd been distracted since that conversation with your mother."  
Sydney shook her head.  
"I JUST CANNOT BELIEVE YOU!"  
"Why are you being so secretive about your pregnancy? I mean, why aren't you telling people about it? Why won't you tell us who the father is? Why on earth did you confide in your mother?"  
"IT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS WHO THE FATHER IS! AND I'LL TELL PEOPLE WHEN I WANT TO! AND MOM KNEW I WAS PREGNANT JUST BY LOOKING AT ME!"  
Sydney heard footsteps behind her and like always, she hoped they were Sark's. But they weren't. Will had entered the house.  
"You're pregnant, Sydney?"  
"I can take that to mean it isn't Mr. Tippin's, then."  
Sydney glared at her father and she turned to Will.  
"Yes, I am."  
"How far along?"  
"Two months."  
"Almost through your first trimester."  
"Yes."  
"Sydney, why didn't you tell Francie and I about this?"  
"I didn't want to tell anybody."  
"Where's the father?"  
"Gone."  
"The jerk disappeared on you."  
"He's not a jerk." Sydney defended immediately.  
"Okay. Sorry. But where is he?"  
"Gone."  
Sydney was shutting down again. She had started to come back, emotions and everything. She hadn't been crying every two seconds and things seemed, to everyone else, fall back into place.  
Will wrapped his arms around Sydney gently.  
"Don't worry, Syd. I'll take care of both of you."  
"He would have taken care of us if he could." Sydney tried not to scoff at Will's comforting. He couldn't even take care of himself. He had no real job and no money coming in. He couldn't take care of the two of them.  
Jack jumped in, "We'll all try to take care of you both."  
Sydney looked up. "You want to take care of me?"  
"I do, Sydney."  
"Then arrange for me to talk with my mother without any cameras, alone."  
"I don't think that is wise, Sydney."  
"I don't care. I want to talk to her."  
"I'll see what I can do."  
Jack left Sydney behind with Will. 


	5. Come Back to Me Chapter Five

Come Back to Me  
Chapter Five  
  
It had taken Jack several weeks to arrange the meeting with Irina privately. Sydney was starting to show, having passed her first trimester, but neither had told Francie. Amazingly, Will had been helpful. Everytime Sydney had a craving, Will had gone to get her whatever she wanted. He was there with her through the morning sickness and the mood swings and he didn't even seem to mind. She wasn't nearly as bad yet, though. Give her time and angry Sydney was going to appear. But for now, Sydney was on her way to see Irina Derevko privately. Sydney had hoped to talk about Sark and maybe about this baby. She saw Vaughn standing by his desk with Weiss. Vaughn approached her. "Hey, Syd. I haven't talked to you in a long time."  
It was true. Not since the day they had all discovered she was pregnant.  
"Yeah."  
She wouldn't look him in the eye. Weiss came barreling over, "Hey, Miss Bristow, how are you feeling?"  
"Okay. The morning sickness hasn't hit me too badly yet."  
"That's good."  
"And the rest of you?" Vaughn asked, hurriedly.  
"I'm fine." It was her automatic response. Vaughn knew that. He sighed. She didn't ever want to talk to him anymore. It both hurt and worried him.  
"Do you know if it's a girl or a boy yet?"  
"No. I don't want to find out until I have it."  
Vaughn nodded. "You like surprises."  
"If they are good."  
"Okay, we have your mother locked up in a room. I can take you to her now if you would like."  
"I would."  
She followed Vaughn to the room. He unlocked it. Irina stood up and saw the pregnant Sydney entering her room. "Hello, Sydney. You look well."  
"Thanks."  
"Morning sickness not bother you much? It didn't affect me very often, either."  
Sydney nodded, almost afraid to have this connection with her mother.  
Vaughn shut the door behind her. He wanted to know what was being said between the two. Little did he know, Jack had wired the room.  
  
"How are you really, Sydney?" Irina asked as soon as they thought they were alone.  
"It comes and it goes. Will's been great, actually. He's really helpful to me."  
"He doesn't know who the father is."  
"You're the only one."  
"No wonder everyone has been so kind to me. They're trying to butter me up."  
Sydney smiled a little.  
Irina put her hand on Sydney's arm.  
"I am sorry, Sydney."  
"I know. It's Sloane's fault."  
"Sloane killed him."  
"Yeah. He tried to cover for me. I was doing my countermissions for CIA and Sloane picked up on my recent ones. So, when Sloane asked Sark about them, he said he was the one that did it. And now he's gone."  
Neither of the women knew Jack Bristow had just shouted out in anger and caused Michael Vaughn to run into the room. "What is it, Mr. Bristow?"  
"I can't believe it."  
"What?" That's when Vaughn heard Sydney's voice come in and knew what Jack had done.  
"His gravestone is so plain. It just says Mr. Sark and a little quote. They didn't even bother with is first name."  
"Not many knew it, Sydney."  
"I know. I remember when I asked him what it was. He just told me. I figured I would have to finigle it out of him."  
"But he told you."  
"Yeah."  
Irina studied Sydney.  
"How long were you two..."  
"It all started on a mission. We were pretending to be a honeymooning couple."  
"You took it a little too far?"  
Sydney almost laughed. "I guess. He took me out to be a normal person for the night. And it worked. He made me forget everything, you know. It was like when I was with Sark...no, when I was with Andrew, no one else existed. He was two different people."  
"Was he?"  
"Yeah. Sark was the businessman that he always thought he had to show people. Andrew was the loving man who would have given me the stars if he could."  
Irina nodded, but found herself a little surprised to hear about Sark like that.  
"We thought it would be safer if no one else knew about us."  
"But it didn't help, did it?"  
"Not really. He still got killed. Gosh, I'm like posion to all the men I know. Their lives are always destroyed when they get involved with me."  
"You know, it's not your fault Sark was killed. He probably would have made a mistake at some point and did it all on his own."  
Sydney nodded, trying to accept.  
"He loved me, Mom."  
"I know he did. I think his fascination with you started when he worked for me."  
"What?"  
"I had a file on you on my desk. He recognized you immediately as the woman who had been spying on him when he was talking to the K-Directorate head. He wanted to know everything about you from then on."  
She smiled.  
"He wasn't as evil as everyone thought he was." Sydney commented.  
"No, he wasn't. He just did what he had to do."  
Sydney nodded.  
"Pregnancy bodes well with you, Sydney. You look beautiful even when you're sad."  
Vaughn sat down to Jack in the room next to Sydney's. He listened with an eerie fascination. "Sark is the father."  
Jack nodded angrily.  
"Thanks, Mom."  
The two woman stared at each other. Irina reached out and pulled Sydney to her. Sydney clung to her mother and tried to keep her grief from overtaking her again.  
"Tell me, Sydney, is it a girl or a boy?"  
"I don't know. I think it's a girl, though."  
"She'll be beautiful."  
"I know."  
"Have you thought of names?"  
"If it's a girl, definitely Mercy. Sark and I had mercy on each other, which led to the little one. If Sloane had had mercy on Sark, he would still be here with me. Mercy is just such a fitting name. If it's a girl. If it's a boy, probably Jonathan. That was Sark's cover name when we were the honeymooning couple."  
Irina smiled, bitterly, "That's your father's name, too."  
"I know. But that's not why I would name him Jonathan."  
Irina nodded. "But everyone would think that's why you named him Jonathan. After your father."  
Sydney agreed. They heard a pounding on the door. "Time's up, Miss Bristow."  
It was Weiss. He opened the door.  
Sydney stood up and stared at her mother. Irina said hurriedly, "No matter how dismal your life may seem, you've got that little girl or boy growing inside of you. You'll make it through all of this, I promise. Andrew would want it that way. Andrew would want you to be happy. So try, Sydney. Try."  
It was one of the best pieces of advice Irina Derevko had ever dispensed. She didn't know Sark as well as she had thought, but she knew that if that man had loved her daughter, he would want her to be happy.  
"Thanks, Mom."  
"And as soon as you find out what it is, tell me."  
Sydney smiled briefly and followed Weiss out the door.  
  
Vaughn leaned against the table. His mouth had dropped open once again in shock from Sydney's comments with her mother. Sark was the father of her baby. Sark was the man that Sydney loved. Sark was the man that loved Sydney. At least in her opinion. It was hard to imagine Sark loving anybody. Jack slammed his fist on the table. "What was she thinking?"  
Vaughn couldn't even answer.  
"She should have known better than to get involved with Mr. Sark. She should have known better than to have trusted him."  
"Jack, I don't think you should tell her that."  
"Why shouldn't I?"  
"First, she'll know that you were listening. That I was listening. I betrayed her trust. No wonder she isn't confiding in me anymore. Besides, she won't like you attacking him. The father of her baby. And he's dead anyway. So nothing except a darling little kid is coming out of it. We have to be supportive of her. If we aren't, she's going to shut down completely. You've seen the way she's been. She turns her emotions off or they go on overdrive. I'd rather have emotional Sydney than emotionless Sydney."  
Jack nodded. "For once, I think you are right, Mr. Vaughn." Jack stood up and went to Irina's cell, Vaughn at his heels. "Jack." Irina said calmly as he stood her up.   
"Irina."  
"Did you enjoy Sydney's and my conversation?"  
"What?"  
"Oh, don't act like you don't know. You wired the room."  
"I did not."  
"You wanted to know who the father was, so you wired the room. Mr. Vaughn knows as well. He couldn't resist listening, even though he feels guilty about it."  
Vaughn looked away from her gaze.  
"If you thought we wired the room, why did you let Sydney say his name?"  
"Sydney needed to talk about it. It's better for her to tell me about it, than keeping it all bottled up. She had a connection with Mr. Sark that no one, not even I understand. And then he fathered her child. She'll love him even more for that. She misses him like crazy and she needs to get it all out. You just happened to get to know who he is. But you won't say anything to Sydney. It isn't wise."  
Jack shrugged as he led Irina back to her cell. Vaughn sank down into the chair Sydney had sat in and heard Weiss's voice call out, "Mr. Sark is the father?"  
Vaughn nodded in confirmation, unable to do anything else. Weiss sat next to Vaughn and they sat in silence. 


	6. Come Back to Me Chapter Six

Come Back to Me  
Chapter Six  
  
Sydney was showing. She had just started to wear maternity clothing. She put her hand over her abdomen and considered what she was going to do with this baby. How she was going to make it through without Andrew. Francie came in the kitchen and saw Sydney like that, and suddenly as if a lightbulb flickered on inside her head, she knew. "Sydney?"  
"Hmm?" She wasn't really in the mood to talk. She was going through one of her quiet moods.  
"Are you pregnant?"  
Sydney turned around. She knew it would only be a matter of time until Francie figured it out. "Yeah."  
That was all she said. She hoped that would get her by, but Francie had a whole bunch of questions she wanted answered.  
"I didn't even know you had a boyfriend. Who is he?"  
"Him."  
"Where did he go?"  
"He went away."  
"Away?"  
"Yes."  
"The jerk left you after he found out you were pregnant."  
"NO! He isn't a jerk and if he could have taken care of us, he would have."  
"Why on earth would you think that? He left you, Sydney. He got you pregnant and disappeared. That definitely puts him into the jerk category."  
Sydney's eyes welled up.  
"He would have stayed if he could."  
She wouldn't tell anybody that he was dead. That would raise suspicions in Francie's mind.  
"What world are you living in, Sydney?"  
Sydney flinched. Why was Francie being so mean? She was probably angry that Sydney hadn't told her about the baby. Will came into the kitchen and noticed Sydney had tears in her eyes. "Syd?"  
"He couldn't stay. He couldn't stay. He couldn't stay. He couldn't stay."  
"Francie, what did you say to her?"  
"You knew?"  
"Yes. I heard her talking to her father. I found out a month ago."  
"And you didn't tell me."  
"Sydney wasn't ready to tell you. Now what did you say?"  
He asked this all over Sydney's, "He coudn't stay," mutterings.  
"I called him a jerk and started criticizing him."  
"No. You don't criticize the guy. No one knows who he is, but when anyone says anything against him, she gets defensive and she starts to shut down. She's doing it now."  
Will hugged Sydney. "He couldn't stay, Will."  
"I know. I know. He would have taken care of you both, right?"  
"Yes. You believe me, don't you?"  
"Of course, I do, Sweetheart."  
Sydney jerked away from him.  
"I need some air."  
"Sydney?"  
"I...can't."  
Sydney hurried away from her two friends. Will was giving Francie a glare, but Francie didn't know what to say. Sydney hopped into her SUV and headed to the cemetary.  
  
She found his gravestone with much ease. She visited him at least twice a week. Sometimes she would tell him about the baby or the doctor's appointment. Sometimes she would cry for him. Sometimes she would yell at him for leaving her. But she always felt better after she got done. "Hey, Andrew...Francie found out today. She was being mean about it, though. I have to defend you so many times to everyone. I swear, you'd be surprised to hear how often I say it's not his fault. I used to be the one to blame you for everything wrong in my life. It was easier then, wasn't it? I miss you a lot. I really do. I wish you would come to doctor's appointments and birthing classes. Actually, I start one up in a couple of weeks. I get to do the whole breathing thing. People say it hurts to give birth. I wonder what it's like compared to torture. Listen to me. How sick is that? I actually have some kinds of excrutiating pains to compare it to. Will's going to be my coach. I think I would have asked Vaughn if I thought it was safe. You liked Vaughn better than Will anyways. I could tell. But I don't even want to talk to Vaughn anymore. He wouldn't understand this, you know? I mean, I love you, but if I told him that, he wouldn't get it. He would be disgusted and try to tell me all the reasons why I shouldn't love you and why you and I shouldn't have been together. But he didn't know. He didn't know you. He doesn't really even know me anymore. I guess I won't let him. I'm afraid I'll ruin his life like I ruined yours, and Danny's, Marshall's and Will's. Vaughn's life hasn't been specifically tainted by me, yet. I know you probably think I'm crazy. You'd tell me that this is not my fault and that I shouldn't blame myself. Either that or laugh at me. But I'm afraid. Will's doing his best to be there for me. I'm surrounded by people who care about me. Dixon, Marshall, my dad, Will, Vaughn, get this, Irina...but I feel so alone. Like I can be with everyone and it's like none of them really know how to help me. Okay, I should probably get back. Will's going to start worrying and Francie is probably starting to feel guilty. I'll come back later. I love you." Sydney kissed her fingers and pressed them against the cold marble stone engraved with Mr. Sark on it. She smiled nostalgically as she exited the graveyard to go home.  
  
Francie was waiting for her when she got home. Will had left to get Sydney some more ice cream, hoping it would comfort her to a degree. "Syd. I'm glad you're back. I'm sorry."  
"Yeah. It's okay. I know you're just mad that I didn't tell you yet."  
"Well, I guess I am. I mean, you told Will before you told me."  
"I didn't tell Will. I was talking to my dad when Will came in. He found out that way. I probably woudn't have told either of you about it yet. Until someone figured it out. I didn't really want to answer a bunch of questions. I already got enough of those at work and from my dad."  
"You told the people at your work."  
"So I could stop going on so many business trips."  
"I should have noticed that."  
"It's not a big deal, Fran."  
"How long have you been pregnant?"  
"Four months. Almost five."  
"And I didn't notice until now?"  
"Well, I've been busy and you've been busy. It's not that surprising."  
Francie hugged her best friend.  
"You know Will and I still love you, don't you?"  
"Yeah. I know."  
"And we'll love the baby, too."  
"Of course you will. Who doesn't love babies?"  
Francie smiled.   
"Is it a girl?"  
"I don't want to find out."  
"Really?"  
"Yeah."  
"Okay. So should we be planning a nursery?"  
"Probably." Sydney tried to smile.   
Francie acted like she didn't notice her sadness. Will came in with ice cream.  
"I come bearing gifts. Is it safe?"  
"Depends on what the gift is." Sydney called back to him.  
"Ice cream. Rocky road."  
"Definitely safe!" Will smiled, glad to see Sydney a little bit happier again. He brought in the carton and three spoons, along with a couple of movies. He passed the spoons around and the three friends settled in for a movie night. 


	7. Come Back to Me Chapter Seven

Come Back to Me  
Chapter Seven  
  
  
Sydney rested her head on the pillow. Will held onto her hand as Sydney breathed in deeply. "This is so stupid." Sydney commented quietly to Will.  
He laughed a little. "Yeah. You already know all the breathing techniques to divert pain."  
Sydney smiled. "This better be useful."  
"It will be."  
"Okay, next, we need the daddies to lift her head up and count to three."  
Will did as he was told. "Okay, mommies, time to breath. Hehehehehooo..."  
Sydney did that, but rolled her eyes while doing so.   
"You need to concentrate, Syd."  
"I don't wanna."  
"You have to."  
"But Dad...."  
Will brushed a stray hair from her face. Sydney stared into his blue eyes and Will averted his gaze. Sydney smiled a little.   
"Hey, Will."  
"Yes."  
"Thank you for being her for all of this."  
"Hey, you're my best friend, Sydney. I'd do anything for you."  
"You already have."  
The moment had passed and both went back to the breathing exercises. Will asked, his voice low, "Have you talked to Vaughn lately?"  
"What?"  
"I was just wondering."  
"Why?"  
"He's been worried about you, Sydney."  
"How do you know?"  
"He calls me to check up on you."  
"He does what?"  
"You won't talk to him and he knows that I'm the one that's doing the whole baby thing with you, so he calls to find out how you are."  
Sydney blushed prettily.  
"He doesn't give up, does he?"  
"Apparantly not."  
"I'll talk to him after this class, okay?"  
"You promise?"  
"Yes."  
Will nodded. "Okay. Now breathe."  
Sydney shook her head, but did as she was told.  
  
"Vaughn." He answered, wearily. Sydney wouldn't talk to him. Will kept him pretty well informed, but it just wasn't the same.  
"This isn't Joey's Pizza?"  
"No. Wrong number." Vaughn broke into a grin as he hung up the phone. Weiss stopped by his office.  
"Whoa, what is that grin for?"  
"She wants to talk."  
"That's great, man. Tell her I said hey."  
"I will." Vaughn stood up and headed to his car.  
  
He waited patiently for her in the warehouse. She came in slowly, her pace heavy. Vaughn hopped up and found a very pregnant Sydney in front of him. "Wow. You're showing now."  
"Thanks!"  
"No, you still look beautiful, I mean, you look great, I mean, I'm going to shut up."  
Sydney shrugged. "I am six months pregnant, Vaughn."  
"How are you doing?"  
"Quite well. The baby is healthy. The doctors think that it'll be a good pregnancy for me. They said it's because I'm in such good shape."  
Vaughn smiled a little.  
"Still don't know what it is?"  
"Nope. I am not going to find out."  
"How are you doing, otherwise?"  
Sydney sighed and looked at an oil stain on the floor.  
"I'm getting better. It doesn't hurt quite as much."  
"That's good."  
"I still miss him."  
"I know. But he left." Vaughn had to play dumb. He couldn't let her know he knew.  
"Yeah."  
Vaughn took her hand.   
"You know I'm here for you."  
"I do. I wish you could be my coach. But that would get you, me, and the little one killed. Will does a pretty good job. He's so sweet to me. He's been taking good care of me."  
"I've missed you, Sydney."  
"I missed you, too, Michael." Her tongue stumbled over the use of his first name.  
He nodded slowly.   
"I just wasn't ready to face you yet."  
"Why?"  
"I thought you would be disappointed."  
"That you're having a baby? Of course not. I think it's amazing."  
He thought to himself *I just wish it wasn't a murderers child.*  
"Do you want to talk about anything?"  
"No. I just wanted to tell you that I was okay. Will said you were worried."  
"Fink."  
Sydney laughed briefly. "He was worried about me, too. He knows that you were my rock for so long. He wanted me to keep the stability."  
"So I should thank him."  
"Probably."  
They fell quiet.   
"I should go."  
"I guess. But, Sydney, call me if you ever need anything."  
"I will." She kissed his cheek lightly before making her way out the door. 


	8. Come Back to Me Chapter Eight

Come Back to Me  
Chapter Eight  
  
Sydney was now eight months pregnant. The last two months had been pretty much uneventful. Doctor's appointments, birthing classes, a few meetings with Vaughn, and then her new place at SD-6 in communications kept her busy. She was cooking dinner that evening, just happy that the smell didn't make her sick. She stirred the sauce, but felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She felt like she was being watched. She looked out the window, but couldn't see anything. But the feeling wouldn't go away. She was starting to get creeped out. She hadn't felt like she was being watched for a while. She picked up the phone and dialed it hurriedly.  
"Vaughn."  
"I think I'm being watched."  
"Where are you?"  
"My house."  
"I'll come check it out. Don't worry, Syd. You'll be all right."  
"Thanks. I'm probably just being paranoid."  
"With your life, I highly doubt it."  
Sydney sighed as she hung up the phone. Will came in, holding a shopping bag.  
"Hey! What's up?"  
"Did you see anyone when you came in?"  
"No. Why? Is someone out there?"  
"I just have this feeling. Okay, what's in the bag?"  
"Well, I was in the store and I found this little carrier. I couldn't resist buying it."  
He pulled it out. It was a white basket with a blue and pink plaid blanket on the inside. Sydney grinned. "It's so cute."  
"I thought it would be perfect for the little one." Will pressed his hand on Sydney's stomach. "It's kicking again. And you think it's a girl."  
"First, did you forget who you're talking to. I kick better than most guys twice my size. Well, before I got to be in this shape. And you put it into account of who the parents are, it's not suprising the baby kicks a lot."  
Will didn't comment about how he didn't know who the dad was. Sydney jumped when she heard a tap on the window. "Vaughn..."  
She opened the back door and he slipped inside.  
"Hey. I didn't see anybody. I looked all around."  
"I'm just a paranoid mother to be. Thanks for coming to check it out, though."  
"No problem. Aw, that's adorable."  
Vaughn pointed to the basket. "Will just bought it. Oh! You want to see the nursery while you're here."  
"For a second."  
Sydney led him into the room she and Francie had converted into a nursery. There were blue walls, Sydney had picked the color close to Sark's eyes. A white crib sat in the center of the room with yellow blankets and mattress pad. From the ceiling, a mobile hung with teddy bears all around it. A white rocking chair with a yellow and blue heart shaped pillow sat in the corner. The changing table was on the opposite wall.   
"It's wonderful, Sydney."  
"Thanks. Francie gets all the credit. She helped me pick it all out and planned the room out. I just chose the colors. Speaking of Francie, she's supposed to be home anytime. So, you should go. But thank you for listening to the rants of a paranoid woman."  
"You're not paranoid. Call me anytime you think you're unsafe."  
"I always do."  
Vaughn smiled and nodded to Will. "I'll see you later, Sydney." Vaughn slid out the backdoor, missing Francie by two minutes.  
  
Sydney was at her desk when the phone rang. She rubbed her temples and sighed. She had a terrible headache and the baby was kicking like no other. She picked up the phone, "Sydney Bristow."  
"Hello, Miss Bristow."  
"Who is this?"  
"You recall Mr. Sark, do you not?"  
Sydney didn't reply.  
"Answer me, Miss Bristow, or the information I have will not be revealed."  
Sydney stood up, "Tell me who you are."  
"Someone who has information."  
"What is it? I remember him."  
"I should hope so, since your pregnant with his baby."  
"What is your information?"  
"Mr. Sark did not die when Sloane had him shot. He is still very much alive."  
Sydney gasped. She felt her abdomen tighten. She was falling backwards all of a sudden. Her mind flew to the baby. What if it got hurt? Arms had grabbed her back and put her down gentle. She cried out in pain. "Miss Bristow, are you okay?" She heard Marshall's concerned voice asking her. "Hello? Hello?" Sydney yelled into the phone, but the other person had already disconnected. "Marshall...I'm in labor."  
Marshall's mouth dropped open. "But don't you have another month?"  
"Yes..."  
Sydney started to breathe. "I need to get to the hospital. Call Will. Tell him to meet me there. Someone call my dad." Dixon came rushing over.  
"Sydney!"  
"Can you drive me to the hospital?"  
"Yes. Come on."  
"Marshall, please, call Will Tippin. And find my dad!"  
Marshall nodded dutifully and turned away. Dixon helped Sydney to the car. 


	9. Come Back to Me Chapter Nine

Come Back to Me  
Chapter Nine  
  
Sydney was admitted into the hospital and changed into a gown. She was drugged up on epidural and she felt like she was floating around. The pain wasn't really there anymore. She saw three doctors enter with Will and a couple of nurses.   
"Hey, Syd. So today is the day."  
"Yeah...it's so nice of you to be here, Will."  
Will smiled. She wasn't really thinking, he could tell.  
"I wouldn't miss it. Now breath in and out. Just like in the classes."  
One of the doctors approached Sydney. She looked up at him and saw these intense blue eyes. "Andrew..."  
You couldn't see a smile underneath his mask, but he shook his head.  
"You must have me mistaken for someone else. I'm Dr. Aksander."  
Sydney gasped, but Will assumed it was of pain.  
"It's okay, Sydney. Breath in. Hehehehehe."  
"Shut UP!" Will flinched. She was not a happy person.  
"Come on, Sydney."  
The other doctor smiled. "A lot of women are a little testy with the fathers while their in labor."  
Will didn't feel like correcting.   
"HE'S NOT THE ONE WHO DID THIS TO ME!"  
The doctor jumped at her scream.  
"Okay. I'm sorry. I just assumed..."  
Will shook his head, "It's okay. A lot of people think I'm the father."  
Sydney searched the room. "Dr. Aksander. Where did he go?"  
"He had to leave. He just started here today."  
Sydney felt her heart start to pound. "He's back."  
"Who's back, Sydney?"  
"No one. Is my dad here? Did he talk to my mom?"  
"I don't know. He wasn't here when I came in."  
"Sydney, I know that the baby is premature, but I need you to push right now."  
Sydney collapsed into the pillows.  
"I can't."  
"You can." Will comforted.  
"How do you know?"  
"Because you're Sydney Bristow. You can kick the butts of men twice your size."  
"I can do this."  
"Yes, you can."  
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!"  
"Breath, Sydney."  
"Hehehehehoo. AHHHHHHH!" Will was holding onto her hand.  
"OWW! OWW! OWW! Sydney, let go! OWW!!!! You are too strong! OW!" She let go of his hand.  
"Sorry."  
The doctor was at the bottom of the table.   
"One more time, Sydney."  
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"  
Sydney gasped for air. Then a cry was heard.  
"It's a girl."  
Sydney started to ball. Will gripped her hand again. The baby was brought around. Her eyes were closed at the moment. Sydney held her closely to her body. The eyes opened. Blue. Dark, crystal blue. They were his eyes. No doubt about it.  
"You got your daddy's eyes, didn't you, sweet one?"  
She brushed a tear away from her own cheek.   
"Mercy Angelina Bristow."  
"That's a beautiful name, Sydney." Will complimented.  
"I know. It's perfect."  
She kissed the top of Mercy's head. The nurse came. "We'll take her to the nursery for the time being. We'll bring her back to you any minute. Now, on the birth certificate you want Mercy Angelina Bristow, correct."  
"Yes. And the mother and father."  
"Sydney Elizabeth Bristow."  
"The father."  
Sydney didn't say it out loud. Just wrote it down on the paper. Andrew Bryan Sark.  
She slipped the paper to the nurse, who nodded. Sydney leaned back into the pillows. Will brushed her sweaty hair off her forehead and kissed the top of her head.   
"Why don't you sleep? I'll go tell the others."  
"Thanks. Will you tell, um..."  
"Yeah." Will knew she meant Vaughn.  
Sydney closed her eyes and her breathing deepened. She was fast asleep. Will left the room and found Dixon, Marshall, Sloane, Jack, and Francie waiting impatiently.  
  
"She had a girl." Everyone was clapping and hugging each other. Well, at least Francie hugged Jack and Will. Sloane shook Jack's hand, Marshall cowered away, and Dixon just smiled. "Her name is Mercy Angelina Bristow. She's beautiful. She's got blue, blue eyes and a little bit of brown curls. She's going to be a gorgeous baby. They took her to the nursery. She's a little small, since she's a month premature, but the doctors think she'll be alright."  
Francie squealed, "Can I see Syd?"  
"She's sleeping right now. But we can go see Mercy."  
The group headed down the hall, except for Will, who stayed behind to call Vaughn.  
"Vaughn."  
"Hey. Sydney had her baby. A bouncing baby girl named Mercy Angelina Bristow."  
Vaughn nodded. Sydney had wanted to name the girl Mercy.   
"I'll go tell her mother."  
"She'd appreciate that."  
"Thanks for calling."  
"Bye."  
Will sat back down in the waiting room, filled with happiness.  
  
Sydney woke up a couple hours later. Her mind wandered to what had happened before she went into labor. They said Sark was alive. He would have come back if he was, wouldn't he? And that doctor, that had to be him. Those eyes looked so familiar. But she was wishing Andrew was there. Maybe she was just trying to force the doctor into someone. He said his name was Dr. Aksander. That couldn't be just a coincidence, could it have been? She didn't know. I mean, she had been on epidural, pretty heavy stuff. She could have been completely out of it. Maybe Dr. Aksander didn't even exist. He had left pretty quickly. Sark wouldn't have left. He wouldn't have left her behind. Right? Unless he didn't think it was safe. That was possible. If Sloane thought he was dead, he probably couldn't stick around for long. She couldn't decide if she was out of it or not at the time she had the baby. She sighed loudly, but smiled at the thought of her beautiful Mercy. She loved that girl already. How amazing was it that the baby looked like both her and Sark. His blue eyes, her brown hair, a nice blend of their skin. She was perfect in everyway. She couldn't wait to see the baby again.  
  
Jack had been staring at Mercy for nearly an hour, his posture hardly even changing. Will came to stand next to him. Jack said, abstractly, "It's amazing how someone so innocent can come from one so evil."  
Will shrugged, unsure. "What?"  
"I thought the same thing after Laura left. I would see my little girl and wonder how someone so perfect could be a part of someone who was so evil and manipulative."  
"What are you talking about, Jack?"  
"Oh. Nothing."  
"How does Mercy have anything to do with all of that?"  
Jack shrugged this time and kept his eyes on the baby, the beautiful baby girl.  
  
"Hello, Little One. You are so adorable, aren't you?" Sydney kissed the top of her head, which smelled like baby powder.  
"Flower delivery."  
Sydney looked around her room. Roses from Sloane, which disgusted her. Daises from Dixon, filament flowers with special scents and colors from Marshall, irises from Francie, and a giant teddy bear from Will. She wasn't sure where to put these new flowers. A head popped over the lilies and Sydney burst into a grin. She didn't say his name for fear they were being watched. "Uh, put them on the nightstand."  
So Michael Vaughn did as he was told.  
"Cute kid."  
Sydney beamed. "Thanks. Her name is Mercy."  
Vaughn approached the bed. He ran his fingers down the baby's cheek. He smiled.  
"Absolutely beautiful, just like the mommy. I have some more flowers to deliver, M'am. Congratulations."  
"Thank you very much."  
Vaughn smiled at her and disappeared into the corridor. She took the card from the flowers and read it.  
  
WISH I COULD STAY LONGER.  
MV  
  
Sydney grinned to herself as she dipped it back into the flowers and went back to doting on her little girl. 


	10. Come Back to Me Chapter Ten

Come Back to Me  
Chapter Ten  
  
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE REVIEWS. I REALLY APPRECIATE EVERYONE REPLYING. IT MAKES ME WANT TO WRITE. A SPECIAL THANKS TO MASQUERADE, ICE, EDELE LANE, APRIL, MICHEL AND DEVILGIRL FOR FAITHFULLY READING AND REPLYING. AWW, JUST THANKS TO EVERYBODY! AND THANKS TO KELLI, WHO READ IT WHEN I WAS PROOFREADING AND ENCOURAGING ME TO POST IT.  
  
Sydney was released from the hospital a week later. She was now standing in the center of the nursery, cooing quietly to the little girl.  
"Hey, Sweetie. How are you tonight? I love you and you know what? Your daddy loves you. He would be here if he could."  
"And I can."  
Sydney stopped and turned around.  
"You were real."  
"I was. I couldn't stay through. Remember, you were in a SD-6 hospital."  
"How did you...I thought you were..."  
"I was almost."  
Sydney punched his jaw with one hand, cradling the baby in the other hand. He looked away from her.  
"HOW COULD YOU HAVE DONE THIS?! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY TIMES I CRIED AT YOUR GRAVE A WEEK? YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN HERE THROUGH THE MORNING SICKNESS, THE CRAVINGS, IN THE DELIVERY ROOM! NOT WILL! YOU!"  
"I was tortured, Sydney. When Sloane figured he wouldn't get anything out of me, he unhooked me from the chair to kill me. I pushed him into it and latched him in. But when I left the room, the guards were shooting at me. I could hardly walk and I got shot four times. I got away from the building, but fell unconcious. A man found me, but I kept him from taking me to a hospital. Then, I fell into a coma for a month. When I woke up, I was still pretty unhealthy. It took me another month to recooperate. I decided you would be better off without me."  
"How did you come to that conclusion? This was my decision, not yours."  
"I wanted to protect you."  
"You put me in more pain while you were gone."  
"I'm sorry, Sweetheart."  
Sydney nodded.   
"But a few months later, I needed to make sure you alright. I didn't know you were pregnant. You seemed to be fine, so I let you be. But I started to watch you. You're my addiction, Sydney. I couldn't just let you go."  
"The other night."  
"It was me. I saw you with Mr. Tippin. I thought you had moved on. But I found out soon after that you were pregnant. The moment I discovered this, you had gone into labor, I was desparate to get into the delivery room. I forged college certificates and acted as a doctor for the day, but they paged me to go somewhere else. But I did see Mercy. Gosh, I missed you so much."  
Sydney's eyes had welled up.  
"I missed you."  
"I know I never nearly told you that I loved you enough. I do though. I love you."  
Sydney grinned.  
"I knew. And I love you. I thought I had died when I found out."  
"But we're together now."  
Sark had moved behind her.  
"Can I?"  
Sydney nodded and transferred her to Sark's arms.   
"Mercy, meet your Daddy."  
The baby cooed and balled her fist in the air. Sark's eyes were now a watery blue. He pulled Sydney to him.  
"She's an angel."  
"Our angel."  
They stood together, content.  
"Are we a family, Syd?"  
"In our own screwed up version."  
Sydney stood on her tiptoe and kissed Sark softly. The baby protested at being smushed between the two. Sydney giggled.  
"Let's put her down."  
Andrew carefully put her in the crib. Sydney pulled him out into the living room to talk.  
  
She sat in his lap comfortably. He was brushing his fingers through her hair. They were just happy to be silent, neither approaching the last seven months that he had missed. The door opened and shut, Will, who was followed by Francie came in.  
"Is the little one...why is he here?"  
Sydney's eyes lit up.  
"Francie, Andrew is Mercy's father."  
Francie slapped him hard across the cheek.  
"Nice to see you again, too."   
"HOW DARE YOU LEAVE HER!"  
Sydney placed her head on his shoulder and touched his cheek gently.  
"You're going to have a bruise."  
"Violent women in this house. Mercy may have some bad influences."  
"This is coming from you, Mr. Torture-Then-Kill."  
He smirked impishly.  
"Okay. What?" Francie asked.  
"I punched him in the jaw when he came in."  
Will was in a state of shock.  
"Sark is her father."  
"Yes. Will, please, don't be angry."  
"That's what Jack meant."  
"What?"  
"He said he couldn't believe that someone so innocent could come from someone so evil."  
"He didn't know."  
"Oh..."  
"Did he?"  
Sydney's mind wandered back to every conversation she'd had with her father. Forgetting Francie was there, she said, "Only person who knew who you were was my mother. He, He listened in! I can't believe him!"  
Will flinched. Sark ran his hand down her arm.  
"He always does this!"  
"Calm down, Sweetheart."  
Sydney took a deep breath.  
"I was being kind of secretive."  
"Do you think anyone else knows?"  
"I don't know."  
Sark held Sydney closer to him than before. He couldn't be near enough to her since he got back. Francie was incredibly confused, but none of them wanted to explain it to her. Sydney interlocked their fingers together and Sark kissed her knuckles.  
"WWWAAAAA!!!"  
"Let me get her, please." Sark requested earnestly.  
Sydney nodded and shifted so he could get up.  
"So, that's him." Francie commented.  
"It is."  
Sydney looked absolutely ecstatic.  
"You look so happy. I can't believe you took him back."  
"There were circumstances you don't understand. He didn't even know I was pregnant. When he had to leave, he really had to."  
Will understood a deeper meaning, but Francie shrugged.  
"He is hot."  
Sydney felt the tension fall away.  
"Yeah. He is." She stood up and left to watch Andrew with their baby.  
  
He was rocking Mercy back and forth. He was muttering quietly to her in Italian, smoothing her powdery soft head. Sydney leaned against the door jam. She watched him with steady eyes, drinking in the sweetness of the situation. Andrew Sark, Mr. Sark, was rocking a baby to sleep. No one would ever even think about it.  
"Are you going to stand there all night or are you actually going to come in?"  
"I like watching you."  
"Indeed." He stood up, placing Mercy in her crib. He took her hands in his and said quietly, "So, do your friends expect you to come back to talk to them tonight?"  
Sydney shook her head. "Not necessarily."  
"Good." With that, Sark lowered his mouth on Sydney's and kissed her heavily, the repercussions of him returning far from both of their minds. 


End file.
